Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)..... Ahoy !

This month(April-2016) marks the introduction of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which aim to dramatically improve lives across the world by 2030.

we have to remember, Even though an average Indian can now hope to live for approximately 68 years, about 8-10 years are spent in tackling chronic ill health.

so how to face this challenge?
scale up the implementation of proven strategies and enhance research to develop new technologies, drugs and innovative service delivery mechanisms.

what we have achieved? Due to our indigenous research which has been yielded  better indigenous devices, drugs and vaccines. Department of Health Research (DHR) and ICMR have piloted several innovations — 

• treatment for kala-azar was shortened to a single injection from the previously painful course over six weeks while
•  malaria treatment regimens were made more effective.  
• shorter, more effective treatment regimens for leprosy and lymphatic filariasis,
•  m-health technology for malaria management, and 
• community-based interventions to reduce the burden of hypertension and diabetes. 
•  indigenous diagnostic kits have been developed for improved diagnosis of dengue fever, tuberculosis (TB), food-borne pathogens and kala-azar and 
• a portable, efficient and low-cost device to detect cervical cancer.
• With truly collaborative and open partnership, sustained funding and a common goal as key ingredient with 20 years of hard work and crores of money, India’s first indigenous rotavirus vaccine, ‘ROTAVAC’, developed .
• An example of innovations in service delivery and community-based care. The Gadchiroli service delivery model of Home-based Newborn Care, developed by Dr. Abhay and Rani Bang has been instrumental in lowering infant mortality rates ,was well accepted by WHO& UN.
• Baba Amte showed that it is possible to provide high quality care at reasonable cost for leprosy treatment and rehabilitation. 
• Many other non-governmental organisations working in remote and tribal areas have shown that training community volunteers in providing basic health care as well as preventive and promotive services can improve health parameters.

Role of financial incentives to boost the research: research...research...research....

• Fiscal concessions have in the past led to large investments which have enhanced India’s intellectual capital. 
• Tax deductions for research and development in the pharmaceutical industry have been instrumental in shaping a competitive and proficient pharma market in India.
•  Between 2000 and 2015, we have witnessed over $13 billion in foreign direct investment and around 10 million people have been employed as a result.
•  India’s pharmaceutical industry and biotechnology sector have prospered due to these tax breaks, which have ensured that drug prices in India are among the lowest in the world and India is the largest vaccine producer.
• The creation of large data repositories and the application of modern computational tools could help address fundamental questions of disease susceptibility as well as enable the effective use of resources and be a powerful tool to guide health policy.